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Guardians of Mohokare

Empowering students through citizen science

By IW:LEARN

December 19^th, 2023

The Orange Senqu River Commission (ORASECOM), in partnership with the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) and the Department of Water Affairs (DWA), is leading an initiative to bring attention to the pressing challenges posed by the declining water quality in the Mohokare Catchment.

The Mohokare is facing several challenges, including pollution from industries, landfills, and untreated wastewater. These challenges placed the DWA monitoring programme under pressure, leading to the introduction of Citizen Science monitoring as a response.

Citizen Science involves collecting and analyzing data related to the natural world by members of the general public, collaborating with professional scientists.

To kickstart the initiative, training on citizen science monitoring for water quality and quantity was undertaken in primary schools along the Mohokare River. Ten primary schools were chosen to be the starting point for the initiative.

Within the scope of ORASECOM's UNDP-GEF Strategic Action Programme, this project has provided training to chosen primary schools, equipping them with simplified techniques to monitor the health and status of the Mohokare River. The training focuses on utilizing aquatic macroinvertebrates and physical characteristics as effective indicators in the monitoring process.

According to Nthati Toae, the DWA Water Quality Officer and pilot project coordinator,

“This knowledge will safeguard communities and the water resource itself, in that, knowing when there is a problem may change the way people approach water and help identify repercussions of turning water bodies into convenient waste disposal facilities".

Michael Ramaano, the ORASECOM Environment and Water Quality Manager highlighted that the recently conducted third Joint Basin Survey indicated a decline in water quality over the last years, with the Mohokare River being one of the pollution hotspots.

He emphasized the need for both countries sharing the river to take action to return it to a more natural status that can support the ecosystem and economic activities. In response to rising water quality challenges, ORASECOM is establishing a water quality monitoring program that includes community engagement through Citizen Science.

“Citizen science allows the community, NGOs, and other civic institutions to engage on water quality issues as opposed to waiting for monitoring exercises to pick up issues of concern after a long time,” Michael highlighted.

Michael further explained,

"The Citizen Science initiative provides invaluable assistance. With students capable of quickly detecting poor water quality and related dangers, it empowers timely intervention by authorities, preventing potential harm to humans, animals, and the environment."

Meanwhile, Mohokare Primary School Head-teacher, Ms Kefuoe Moledi could not hide her excitement as she praised the Ministry and ORASECOM for the initiative saying that,

“Water is life and by learning to check the quality of this important resource we will be protecting life itself”.

The School Head said that this training will help them to see how polluted the water is and this will in turn teach them to take care of the river and the water which is a source of livelihood for them as they use the water for domestic use as well as for their animals such as cattle and sheep.

The pilot project will continue for six months, in which case, the Ministry of Natural Resources‘ Department of Water Affairs will monitor the selected schools and get monthly data from them. Given the success of the pilot programme, the two ministries; MNR and the Ministry of Education and Training, will enter into a memorandum of understanding for this programme to be part of the primary school's curriculum. It is envisaged that this programme would be rolled out through the Kingdom of Lesotho.

About the project

Funded by the GEF, Implemented by UNDP, and executed by the ORASECOM, the Orange-Senqu River Strategic Action Programme Implementation initiative, is a comprehensive effort to strengthen joint management capacities for basin-wide Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM). The project also demonstrates the environmental and socioeconomic benefits of an ecosystem-based approach to water resources management through the implementation of SAP priority actions in the Orange-Senqu River basin.